Monday, 14 August 2017

International Youth Day, Saturday 12th August 2017 spent with the community in Navrongo

“The youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow.” – Nelson Mandela

Youth empowerment is
an aspect that is important to focus upon in developing countries as well as
developed countries, however it often goes unnoticed. The work of Youth Alive,
Ghana, aims to keep as many children in education as long as possible, in an attempt
to reduce poverty, early child marriage, and increase the confidence of the
youth, offering young people more opportunities. Navrongo, in the Upper East
Region of Ghana, is mainly dominated by farmers, meaning that this region tends
to be economically disadvantaged compared to other regions of Ghana, such as
Accra or Tamale. For this reason, Youth Alive has decided to work in the region
as well as the Upper West, to help tackle issues regarding early child
marriage, the confidence of youth, and sexual health and reproduction, through
delivering sensitisations to the community, increasing their knowledge and
awareness of the subjects.

Do you have a voice?

Recognising what is important to the Youth in Navrongo

The voice of the
youth often goes unheard, especially in underdeveloped countries, where early
child marriage is prevalent. Worldwide there are over 700 million girls that
are married before the age of fifteen, often leading to teenage pregnancy,
unsafe abortions and an end to education, resulting to a life of poverty, whereby
the youth are silent as they do not have the confidence to speak up to their
families, communities and country. It is usually a girl’s family that pushes
her into marriage, due to the cultural belief that as soon as a girl reaches
puberty, they should be ‘in the kitchen and having babies’. It is important
that the Education and Health System work closely together to eradicate early
child marriage. There should be an increased knowledge regarding sexual health
and the reproduction system, as it is often believed by many young girls that
to stop menstrual cramps you should have unprotected sex, or that by having sex
for the first time you won’t get pregnant. This limited knowledge means the
youth have a higher risk of falling into the trap of poverty. By teaching the
youth the facts, they have the knowledge to change their society and cultural
beliefs of the elders, and the issue of teenage pregnancy and early child
marriage will be reduced.

Can anyone make a change?

Raising awareness across townwith our Instagram cut out.

Sometimes, I believe
people from the UK and westernised countries take many things for granted. For
instance, there is a free education system within the UK, giving both males and
females the opportunity to attend school, a right and a privilege that is
largely unrecognised by the population. Little do the youth know, that this
education can lead them to a prosperous future, where both men and women are
equals. In many developing countries however, families need to pay for the
education of their child, suggesting that an education can lead to a better
future, but children from less financially able backgrounds are often
illiterate meaning that they will continue to work in manual labour for the
foreseeable future. Though this still happens in the world, it does not mean
that the youth cannot become successful. Every young person has the power to
change the world, create peace, and fight for equality, no matter of their
background. After all, Barack Obama became the first African-American President
of the United States! It is important that there are idols such as Obama who
the youth can aspire to be, or to achieve their future dreams and goals.

Do you know what your human rights are?

Some of the team wanderingNavrongo Bus Station.

To build the
confidence of youth, International Service; a Human Rights based charity, have
started a partnership with Youth Alive so that the youth know about the
difference between their rights and responsibilities. For example, many of the
youth in the Upper East Region of Ghana believe that their strength is carrying
water, suggesting their lack of understanding of what human rights are. Each
and every person has the right to education, their own body, and the freedom of
speech. Youth Alive hopes to empower the youth to recognise these important
human rights, and the impact that they can have within society, teaching and
implementing changes to cultural beliefs for future generations, leading to an
equal and fair society.

Celebrating
International Youth Day in Navrongo, is exciting for the Youth Alive team, as
it means we are able to meet members of the community and listen to what the
youth have to say. What they feel is
important, and what they believe peace means. During our time spent in the community on Saturday we met some very inspiring Youth who shared with us their dreams and ambitions, they were very passionate about the topic and loved our interaction.

A supportive response from many in the town.

If International
Service volunteers, working in partnership with Youth Alive can achieve one
thing, it is to empower the youth so that their voices are heard. They will not
be afraid to stand up in front of the communities and voice their opinions on
what they believe is important, and they will not be afraid to make a change,
so the world becomes a more peaceful place. As Nelson Mandela states, “The
youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow”.